Starbound Secrets: Down the Rabbit Hole
In Starbound Secrets, explore a ghost ship filled with mystery! Playing as a lone space cowboy it’s up to you to explore the derelict spaceship and uncover a cure for your dear friend Missy, who is sick with the life threatening Space Pig Flu! With your trusty AI companion Bomi by your side, will you find the cure and find out the fate of the ship’s crew? Or will you become another lost soul aboard the ghost ship?
About The Misinformation Rabbit Hole
Named after the famous rabbit hole from Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland,” the rabbit hole effect has its origins in digital information overload caused by social media and platforms such as YouTube and Wikipedia. Driven by curiosity, clicking an interesting video or link can lead to recommendations that draw the user into an endless flow of content. While this can sometimes foster curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge, it can expose users to misinformation and unreliable sources.
Children are especially vulnerable to the rabbit hole effect, as their cognitive abilities are still developing. This fact makes it essential for the younger generation to build resilience against misinformation in an increasingly digital world. This game seeks to raise awareness among children about how information-seeking behaviors can lead to the rabbit hole effect. Through informal learning and reflection, we hope they can use their experiences in the game to recognize and handle misinformation in real-life situations.
About The Game
Starbound Secrets is a live, interactive event played by teams of 2-3 players with a game host. As mentioned above, the game emulates a “rabbit hole effect” related to misinformation, where the first pieces of evidence are believable but become more outrageous over time. In the game, the player starts on a spaceship to find the Dragon Tear, a medicine to cure their best friend Missy’s sickness, but gets sidetracked into believing misinformation about possibly dangerous aliens that the ship’s captain has detected. The experience is comprised of three parts.
Play Experience
Players explore a Minecraft world file, an abandoned spaceship, solve puzzles, and find information. They also meet a cast of characters. The game culminates in the “tipping point,” where players must make a choice based on the information and characters they meet.
The Trustworthiness Activity
While the players engage in the game in Minecraft, they will also work together to reflect on the characters and information they come across during the game. The trustworthiness activity uses cards to prompt players to slow down, ask themselves what they are encountering, and act as a scaffold to help them explore why they make their choices at the tipping point.
The Debrief
The debrief asks players to reflect on how their attitudes, emotions, and decision-making processes regarding misinformation might have influenced their Minecraft game experience. Players first reflect on the reasoning behind their choice during the game in their teams. Afterward, all players compare their reasoning and make broader connections to the Rabbit Hole effect in their everyday lives.
Materials
The Minecraft World File
The materials include the Minecraft world, which offers the players a ready-to-explore environment. Once loaded, this file can be played in Adventure Mode, acting as a designed experience.
The Game Facilitation Guide
The game facilitation guide for Starbound Secrets supports educators, librarians, or facilitators to help guide players through a meaningful and engaging gameplay experience. This guide includes step-by-step instructions, tips, and debrief instructions.
The Game Kit
The game kit provides everything needed to fully experience and facilitate a game built within Minecraft, complete with ship maps, a detailed walkthrough, a concise one-page guide, and materials for a trustworthiness activity.
Slide Deck
This Starbound Secret slide deck enhances the facilitation process, offering a structured set of visuals to help support the organization and logistics of running the game. The slide deck includes a question to start players thinking, descriptions of how to play the game, and a set up for the debrief.
Gameplay Footage
FAQ
How do I install Minecraft?
The game uses Minecraft Education Edition beta (1.21.03). In order to play the game you will need to download the correct Minecraft application for your specific operating system.
Do I need to have an internet connection to play?
Yes. You will need to have an internet connection to play. If you run into problems opening Minecraft, please check to see if your firewalls or antivirus software prevents the game from opening.
How do I log in?
In order to log in to play the game using Minecraft Education, you will need to have a school or organization account. You can use one account for multiple computers. We recommend checking out Minecraft Education’s tutorial on signing in for more information.
What happens if I need to start the game over?
In order to start the game from the begining, you will need to reimport the game world.
What do I do if the game is too dark to see?
If the game is too dark, you can adjust your brightness on your main computer settings.
